Is there a racket scheme to get college students to buy useless texts?

I wouldn't say there is a conspiracy or a racket to buy useless textbooks. I will say that there is an enormous problem with the COST of textbooks. I don't regret having any of my textbooks from university, but paying $200 for one book is highway robbery. The books were definitely helpful in most courses, and I learned a lot from them, but someone somewhere is making a lot of profit off of those.

I knew some Asian guys who used to find out a semester ahead what the required texts would be, and then when they were India or China or wherever for the summer, they would pick them up locally for like $30 instead of $200. The book was exactly the same, except it had a soft cover instead of a hard cover, and the paper was cheaper; they also had a legal notice that they were legal for sale only in a certain list of countries. I'd guess the publishers know that the average student in these countries cannot afford $200 for a book, but they can afford $30, so they make a small profit rather than sell nothing in those locations because they can't afford the prices we pay in North America.

Absolutely it's a racket.

And like all rackets, there's a way to beat it. Library card and a scanner. Enjoy your e-book. That's considered fair use, providing you don't share the copy.

I did my first degree before scanners were commonly available - I made use of a photocopier at a friend's office to photocopy all my texts. Cost me a couple of reams of paper, a toner cartridge and a saturday afternoon every semester. Saved me thousands of dollars.